


Chasing Curiosity

by IDontWriteFanfic_6



Category: Deltarune (Video Game)
Genre: Other characters mentioned - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-12-28
Updated: 2018-12-28
Packaged: 2019-09-29 12:03:37
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 5,362
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17203076
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/IDontWriteFanfic_6/pseuds/IDontWriteFanfic_6
Summary: Seam isn't really one for parties. He forces himself to turn up, anyway; in a vain attempt to distract the dull thoughts that cling to him like cotton. Luckily, a wild card crashes the party, bringing a flicker of fun, fun into life. But is the trouble, trouble really worth the price?





	1. Smoke and Mirrors

**Author's Note:**

> Warning: my writing suffers from stage-three pun disease. It's terminal. You have been warned.

The Dark World never really had any weather. In fact, the word 'weather' itself was foreign; something that the visiting Lightners had briefly spoken of, which Seam overheard. All the suits had come together at the great Hall to welcome the Lightners in a decadent display of card-camaraderie. Glittering silver silk had been hung, and the castle had been dusted and shined to a better condition than it had been in years.  
  
The suit-less had been invited too, despite their classless status. On the condition, of course, that they would behave.  
Seam supposed he was meant to be grateful to the royal suits. After all, it wasn't every day that every Darkner, common or not, was allowed free roam of the castle, and a part in such a grand celebration such as this. The Lightners had even brought exotic foods to the royal spread, such as...? Seam scratched his chin as he tried to remember. Something called 'crackers'? It sounded vaguely  
explosive. Seam chuckled to himself; now that was something a certain impish fellow would enjoy...  
  
He tried looking for that person in the gibbling, over-dressed crowd, but he had no such luck, and, well...Seam gave a low, wistful whistle. Truthfully, the glamour of these events had long since dulled. The endless pleasantries, the empty chatter. Almost every Darkner feared upsetting the Lightners, so much so that any words that left their lips were superficial, decorating the hall like fool's gold. 'What a fine celebration?' 'Indeed!' 'And what to-morrow?' 'Then matters will be discussed between the royal suits' 'I heard King Diamond will be hiring a new guard'...and so on and so forth.  
  
'What a wonderful performance you gave, sir!'  
  
Seam turned, shook himself out of his daze and gave a polite bow.  
  
'It's always a pleasure, Hathy.' He said, serious and humble.  
  
With a flounce of her bedazzled dress, Hathy excused herself, her face tickled pink. (She was secretly planning to sell the dress so she could buy a new mirror). Seam shuffled aimlessly past the kaleidoscopic blur of happy faces, still somewhat disheartened as he made his way to the buffet. Was it a mistake to come here? Everyone else seemed to be having fun. He had no real reason to sulk, not really, and yet here he was. Perhaps the Lightner's food was as good as all the talk implied? His amber button-eye stared vacantly at the long, extravagant spread, his gaze travelling further and further upwards, until - oh! Seam's ears pricked up in pleasant surprise.  
  
At the end of the table sat the one person who could cheer even the heaviest soul. His fellow performer and companion; it was none other than Jevil.  
He was wearing even more festive bells than normal, as opposed to his usual duochrome hat, which made quite a chorus when Jevil spotted him.

'Seam, Seam! What a peculiar surprise to see you here, here!'

Jevil grinned as he balanced on his tail, his eyes twin crescents of amusement.

'Is it?' Seam gave a dry chuckle and a slightly apologetic smile. Jevil stopped attacking the plate of mini-sausages for a brief moment.

'Well, yes, yes, I would say it so seems, as this isn't usually your kind of scene!'  
What was his plush counterpart doing here? Normally Jevil saw him out of the ways, occupied with poring over some dusty text. He cocked his head in curiosity.

'Why, why, you've even gone to the trouble of wearing-!' Jevil loudly exclaimed at first, only to trail off sheepishly. His grin took on a slightly uncertain, embarrassed edge.

'...Fluffy glitter!'

'Tinsel?' Seam offered kindly.

'Uee hee hee! Indeed!' He laughed merrily, although Seam didn't miss the quick, grateful look he shot.

'You look great, great!' And, before Seam had the time to process the compliment, Jevil sprung up and whispered slyly to his ear:

'And a trifle bored, bored.'

Seam blinked in slight astonishment-although he shouldn't have, really. Just because Jevil played the fool, didn't mean he was one. Though, not many people seemed to understand that...  
Well. All the better for Jevil to have the element of surprise, Seam thought, trying his best to emulate his friend's sideways optimism.

'Ha, ha. Well, you got me.' Seam admitted in defeat, though his smile only seemed to grow wider.

'You know...' Seam leaned over, mouth twitching with mirth as he continued in a theatrical stage whisper, 'I overheard the Lightners mentioning something called 'weather'.' His button-eye revolved, twinkling.

'Although, it's probably nothing special. Nothing noteworthy enough to be in the archives, anyway.'

Jevil, who had opted to float in favour of balancing on his tail, listened intently. His voice, lilting playfully as a cunning smile started to uncurl on his own face, said:

'Are you sure, Seam?'

Seam's eyes widened as, with a little flick of the wrist, Jevil revealed a small, dog-eared book, seemingly out of nowhere. The pages were yellowing, and stylised with goofy illustrations.

'SUN'

declared the cartoonish lettering on one page, alongside an aggressively cheerful ball of fire.

'Jevil!' He hissed in alarm. Luckily, his distressed, bottled-brushed tail was hidden under his cloak.

'Where did you get that?'

Jevil dismissed his friend's anxiety with a little nonchalant gesture.

'Oh, hush, hush! I just 'borrowed' it from our gracious Lightners. I'll return it before the morrow and they won't even notice, I promise, promise!' He finished with a mischievous wink, sticking out his tongue.

Seam, already quite familiar with Jevil's love of tomfoolery and subsequent penchant for trouble, replied with a stern murmur:

'For your own sake, I hope so.'

Jevil laughed gleefully, eyes ignited at the prospect of a challenge. He gave a confident twirl.

'Then, I say, say, let's blow this joint!'

And, in the blink of an eye, the two vanished in a puff of smoke.


	2. An Uplifting Investigation

They reappeared in the Scarlet Woods, and Seam struggled to regain his balance, coughing as he stepped out of the rising smoke. He practically pounced on Jevil, who was cackling wildly.

'You impudent, little-! Are you trying to get us arrested? You know we're not allowed to use such magic outside of performing!' That only made the jester laugh harder.

'Ueheee-hee, heee, hee-!' Jevil's neck sprung out of its socket, his head bobbing in hysterics.

'Cease, ce-heease you thilly thourputh!' He giggled uncontrollably, flailing helplessly in Seam's grip as his lisp escaped him, unable to be contained in his own laughter.

'I didn't do this for nothing, y'know! Look up, up!'

'What are you babbling on about, you...?'

Seam slowly stopped shaking the jester like a rag doll; his ears twitching as they sensed...something. His claws loosened their hold on the jester, and his eyes looked past the bleeding-bright trees and followed the trail of smoke. His gaze narrowed, focus needle-sharp. The smoke...was moving east? On its own?

'See, see, I knew you would notice!'

'How is that...possible?'

'I don't know, know! But it doesn't seem random enough to be atmospheric magic, methinks!'

He screwed his head back on, eyes sparkling like stars.

'However, I have a theory, theory.'

Jevil jabbed at a page in the weather-book labelled:

'BREEZE'.

Seam's raised his eyebrows, his face tilted with a flat, blank expression. Then, unable to keep a straight face any longer, he shook his head, shoulders shaking, chuckling.

'Alright, alright. What're you trying to show me, exactly?'

With that, Jevil shot up, clicking the heels of his oversized shoes before bouncing back down.

'Ah! Well, well, that - I don't know either, either.' His voice faltered a little in its conviction.

'But, but! I do believe it's better to solve a mystery with a friend, don'tcha think?' He remarked, flashing his signature toothy grin.

''Course.' Seam stood up, placing a fond paw on the jester's shoulder.

'As opposed to letting the curiosity kill you, ha ha! Or rather, kill me. Ain't that how the saying goes?' Seam peered up at the snaking smoke, which by now had nearly faded. Surely his funny little friend didn't intend to catch something he could barely see? That sounded darn near impossible.  
Jevil interrupted Seam's train of thought with a timely tap of his foot. Seam turned and watched as the jester pirouetted into the air with practiced ease, one, two, three times. He was now at least 3 feet above the fuzzy, lilac-coloured mage.

'Grab a hold, doll!'  
Jevil teased, offering his tail for his friend to latch onto. Seam blinked. They were going to fly? He shook his head again in disbelief. Ah, why the hell not?

Already caught off guard by the peculiarity of his friend's action, he was even further taken aback by...well. He didn't expect Jevil's tail to be so felt-like in texture! It was fairly similar to his own tail in that regard, which was...interesting.  
It was a good thing that Jevil couldn't see Seam from here, struggling to hide the silly, sentimental smile that threatened to split his face. Who knows what he would've said.

The two had floated quite far up already, having nearly passed the tallest of the ruby-red canopies. The trees swayed hypnotically below, and now they were within touching distance of the benign, buoyant glowshards, strung together by magic, which speckled the ebony sky like carnival lights. And yet, Seam noticed, further and further up they went, with Jevil showing no sign of slowing down. What a bizarre sight they must be; a cat clinging onto an imp dressed like a fool, bat-like cape billowing and tail curled like a J-shaped handle; 'like an umbrella!' Seam realised, and then howled with laughter at the absurdity. A moth-eaten magician with a flying umbrella! Now he had seen everything.

'What's so funny, funny?' He heard Jevil ask eagerly. Seam imagined he was craning his head and arching his eyebrows in that ironically cat-like manner that he's seen him do from time to time. Ha ha. Maybe he was rubbing off on him.

'Hee, hee, hee, haaa...' Seam wiped a tear from his remaining eye.

'You always know how to cheer me up, Jevil.'

Seam felt his friend's tail twitch a little, perhaps in surprise, but otherwise, Jevil did not interrupt, sensing that now was not the time.  
Seam blinked slowly, taking the time to absorb the landscape before him, which was looking more dinky and miniaturised by the minute. The glowshards had become a distant galaxy, and the habitual blackness that blanketed every part of the Dark World was becoming increasingly stained by an otherworldly, watery film of white light. It would be more rational to be gripped with terror, as they were fast approaching the limit of the small bubble which was their entire world. And yet, Seam only felt peace.

He finally broke the silence.

'I've been feeling out of sorts for a while.'

He shrugged.

'I've no intention to shirk my duties as a Darkner; I'm fine with distracting everyone, and I'm pretty good at it too, I guess. 'Course, it is my purpose.'

'And I always enjoy our acts together. It feels good to spread smiles, even if they never last too long...'

Seam paused, and then toyed with his thoughts, frowning gently as he struggled to shape them into words. Then, picking his words carefully:

'Nevertheless...I feel like...what I do...what _we_ do...is never enough for anyone, anymore. The Lightners always leave, naturally, and the Darkners wait longer and longer...and meanwhile the Kings get more impatient and... desperate.'

Jevil's tail shivered, and curled further around Seam's paw in silent sympathy.

'It's not enough for me to simply entertain as the Royal Mage, anymore. Now I'm the Royal Adviser, too, apparently. Ha.  
But soon they started to pressure me, piling me with increasingly serious concerns, wanting me to persuade them that what they know to be inevitable is instead untrue, and I thought I could handle it, I honestly did.  
But...I can't.'

He drew in a sharp breath and then slowly released it with a heavy sigh.

'I may enjoy performing, but I don't enjoy pretending. It makes me feel as though....'

He chuckled darkly, his deep voice echoing into the abyss.

'As though I'm falling apart at the seams.'

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You see, Jevil and Seam are so funny together because Seam is a cat, while Jevil behaves like a hyperactive puppy on an ice cream bender. Don't @ me. I'm kidding, you can @me if you want. :)


	3. The Value of Fun

They had come to the end of their journey, evidently, as Jevil's floating had slowed to a stop. 

An enormous glass barrier towered before them, and their eyes met with the glare of a harsh, blindingly white light. It was like a window to another world.... which, incidentally, it was.   
A window, that is.

'Well, well! Here we are!' Jevil announced, before gently lowering Seam onto the windowsill. 

Seam, still squinting against the glare, struggled to get a better look at his friend, his mouth stitched into a tight, nervous line. Jevil was completely silhouetted; it was hard to get any read on him. 

'Jevil, I... I hope I didn't drag you down.'

The silhouette paused, before raising one foot and making a complete 180° heel turn. Seam watched as his shadow spun in kind, like a twin devil.   
Jevil fixed Seam with a disappointed glance. He tutted, folding his arms. Such needless anxiety!

'You silly cat. Don't just say things like that! Besides, besides...' He looked down for a brief moment, before staring up at Seam. Seam watched in wonder as his golden-flecked eyes sparkled, brimming with a rare sincerity.

'I'm not going to break just because my poor friend has a heavy heart. And you are made of much sterner stuff than you give yourself credit for, Seam. You can do anything!' He cheered, voice ringing with utmost confidence. 

Because of course he was. 

Unlike Jevil, who was overzealous, always having to improvise and roll (or, more appropriately, spin) with the punches, Seam always knew what to do in the end.   
Always so calm and clear-headed, despite the world revolving so ruthlessly, and never unkind; he was remarkable like that.

'So, so...could you worry a little less, maybe?' 

He knew that he was just a jester, a distraction at best, and his words only meant so much, but...

'I'll keep that in mind.'

The light lessened a little, allowing Jevil a better look at his face. Oh what a relief, relief! His friend's peace of mind seemed finally restored as he took his words to heart; his fluffy face lit up like a dimpled jack o' lantern, and now Jevil was smiling, too. He giggled with glee, practically bouncing off the walls, much to his friend's amusement.

Now that their eyes had grown accustomed to the light, they were able to see that the glass, which had frosted over, was transformed into a mosaic of crystalline patterns, blooming, icy flowers shining in the cold. They crept into every corner, glittering, cerulean blue and completely alien to the pair of jokers, who had never seen anything like it.  
It far outshined the King Diamond’s treasury of plastic gems, to say the least.

Jevil's hat jangled as he bounded towards the window, which, if one looked closely, was slightly ajar.   
His voice was hushed with awe.

'There's the source, source!' 

Seam had completely forgotten about the mystery at this point, so engrossed in the moment was he, and marvelled at the unnatural-yet-natural sensation. As he edged closer, his fur danced, its flute-like chorus piercing straight through him.   
Looking down, he saw Jevil fidgeting foot to foot in anticipation, grinning dangerously from ear to ear.   
'Oh dear...' Seam thought, rolling his eye. Looks like he's had another one of his brilliant ideas.

'Jevil...' he started, but it was too late. The short jester had already leapt up, trying his damnedest to pry the window wide open with a Devilsknife.

'Jevil, WAIT!' 

An extraordinary, thunderous howl rushed towards him, tackling him with tremendous force. Deep grazes trailed in the wood as he curled himself around the edge, hanging on by the tips of his claws.

'Ack-!'

The sound of Seam cursing was smothered by an overwhelming force, the gales of wind roaring, its gob spitting out a bucketloads of snow. Every detail was suddenly erased in the whiteout, which, along with the freezing temperature (that would have rattled his bones like a rickety wind-chime if he had any) was making it very hard to concentrate.

.

CRACK! 

The window slammed shut, but the pressure was too much; Seam plummeted backwards, and could only watch as the window was quickly shrinking into a tiny square of light. He heard a faint voice cry his name as he spun rapidly, head over tail, tail over head. 

He squeezed his eyes shut, heart pounding hard as he struggled to stay in control.

'Alright, ok, ok...take stock of the situation...' 

He forced himself to imagine King Spade, the biggest and nastiest royal suit, throwing the kingdom into disarray, furious at having to find a new mage better than he.   
To take small consolation in the fact that no one, except for himself, would be able to fill his shadow, let alone outgrow it. The thought actually did cheer him a little in spite of him currently speeding towards the ground, which was spinning at a dizzying pace, hungry to greet him. 

He took a deep breath. Concentrated, as every seam and stitch in his arm started to glow, his magic travelling through his arm and into his outstretched paw. 

He flexed his paw, feeling the red-hot sparks jump and crackle from finger to finger.

With razor-sharp focus, he summoned a needle attack, the long golden thread burning bright as it trailed before him. He narrowed his eye and the needles darted, left, right, through the trees, threading themselves and criss-crossing as they cast a golden glow through the leaves-

except they weren't leaves.   
The splodges of scarlet unfurled and scattered, revealing themselves to be butterflies (or, as Jevil liked to call them, 'winged hood-winkers'), and his vision was swarmed once again. 

It was a good thing Seam held no belief in luck; the threads, falling loose as they missed the remaining branches, hovered as the needles redirected their course in a split-second; smooth,   
swift,   
a cat's cradle deftly threaded between a new cluster of trees-  
and embedded themselves. Sharply.

Seam felt himself jerk as the threads only just caught his limp body; the strength of the fall had him swinging haphazardly until, threads creaking, he finally settled into a gentle rock. He laughed a raspy, punctured laugh; if he hadn't just narrowly avoided falling to his death, this would have almost felt soothing.

At the sound of chiming bells, Seam sluggishly opened his eye.

The gaudy colours of the Dark World, or at least the forest, had become muted, softened beneath a silent icy quilt of what he would later learn to call 'snow'. Hence, any sounds, such as the footfalls of his friend, became strangely muffled, as though lost in a hazy sea of static. Speak of the Jevil...

'Seam!' Rounding a corner, he saw him peeking out between the black bars of the trees, bouncing across the ivory plain and past the long, stark shadows. He certainly looked ruffled; his clothes were comically windswept to one side, as though frozen in a state of shock. Otherwise, he looked fine.

Jevil looked up at Seam sheepishly, rocking back and forth on his toes.  
'I must apologise, apologise. I hadn't expected that gate to release so much chaos, chaos!' 

'You hadn't?' said Seam, raising an eyebrow. 'What did you expect after tearing open a hole in the sky!'

'Are you ok, ok?'

''Course I am.' He said, with a good-natured smile. He extended a claw and nicked the flickering threads, freeing himself, and somersaulted gracefully to the floor. Jevil clapped.

'Look at all this new stuff we get to play with!' His arms stretched out in excitement, head spinning like a carousel. Seam laughed.

'Even if I went just a little bit overboard, it was certainly worth it for such spoils, spoils!' 

'Hmm...even if we don't know what it is.' Seam shifted the snow with his foot, eying it curiously. It was cold to the touch. He looked up, a little slyly.

'I think you lost your hat.'

'Huh?!' Jevil stopped dead in his tracks. He patted himself up and down, eyes darting in panic-except…he was wearing his hat. What-?

'Ha ha ha!'

Jevil was drenched in snow, which, in his distraction, befell him as soon as Seam's fist smacked the tree. His small frame was utterly engulfed in the stuff, resembling a poorly-made snowman. Or a pouting dust-bunny.

Seam was in stitches.

'Ha ha ha, hee hee hee! How's, how's that for a taste of your own medicine!'

Jevil licked the snow clean off his face with his long blue tongue.

'Nu-ha! It tastes like nothing!' He cheekily retorted, before shaking off the remaining snow, showering the cat mage with snowflakes in the process.

Seam held out his paws, cupping them with wide-eyed surprise as the specks melted in his fur. 

'This is just bizarre...' 

As he breathed, silver clouds of condensation curled around him.

'Um, Seam? What's all that, that, over there?'

'Hm?' 

He turned, and then noticed the lumps in the snowfield before him, just below the mess of disintegrating threads.

'Oh dear...it seems all my inventory has been scattered...Jevil-!'

He scrambled after Jevil, who had dived into the snow, using the momentum to roll forwards, before picking up more items than was possible, or indeed, sensible.  
Seam hurriedly scooped up a neatly folded, shiny cloth. Jevil nearly dropped everything he was carrying.

'What's this?'   
His voice was a perfect imitation of innocence, his face holding nothing but simple curiosity...but his tail betrayed him. It curled and uncurled itself like a mischievous python.

'It's not ready yet.' Seam huffed, drawing himself to his full, lofty height, and keeping the fabric close to his chest. 

'Or, more accurately...it's not time to give it to you. After all, Darkner's Eve isn't even upon us yet, and-'

'It's for me, me???' 

He shouldn't have said that. Now he was starting to see double, nay more, as his companion bounced rapidly up and down, like a hyperactive yo-yo. All the items went flying in a tornado of chaos. Seam sighed, knowing already that he had lost the game.

'Alright. Here.'

Jevil caught the fabric eagerly with outstretched fingers, and unfolded it.  
His bobbing slowly came to a halt, as he gaped at the present, pointy ears pricked in astonishment.

In his hands was an expertly hand-sewn cloak. Its fabric was silken, patchwork-gold, and decorated in a chequered pattern. Its shape very much resembled one of Seam's own cloaks, specifically ones reserved for their performances. At its base was an upturned, lustrous black collar, which was glittering and translucent. Its hue and crescent insignias clearly meant to emulate the night sky.

'Oh, Seam, Seam! Thank you!' 

Jevil beamed, his shark-toothed grin bright, bright as the sun. Seam couldn't help but smile, mirroring his delight. But then...

'What's wrong?' He shook the jester's shoulder gently, concerned.

Jevil's expression dimmed, his eyes near-pitch black, like blind eyes with no buttons. His head hung limply.

'I don't, I don't...deserve this. All I ever do is get on everyone's nerves.'   
He said in a small voice. Now it was Seam's turn to laugh in disbelief.

'You funny little man. There's no sense in being alive if you don't have a little nonsense, or 'chaos' every now and then, eh?' Seam said, imitating Jevil's voice with a wink. When he didn't seem to respond, he leaned over and whispered a secret:

'Y'know, no one else in the entire world understands the value of fun as well as you do.'

That made his ears perk up.

'Really?'

'Really. And if the price is a little trouble now and then, I don't care.' 

As if to prove a point, Seam surprised the eccentric jester by sweeping him into warm, secure embrace. His tall stature dwarfed Jevil in comparison. That didn't matter to Seam. 

'Shhheam...' Jevil giggled a short, breathless giggle, that was teetering a little too high...

'Seam, I can't, I can't breathe!' His voice was muffled, while his tail cork-screwed.

'Oh, sorry.' He loosened his grip a little, and looked down at his companion. 

'Is that better?' 

Jevil looked back, his impish face twitching in a peculiar series of concealed expressions. He finally gave a wobbly smile.

'Yeth. I mean yeth! I mean-darn it.' Seam struggled not to burst out laughing as Jevil tried, and failed, to disappear into his hat. They both gave up, and both ended up laughing.

'Ha ha ha ha!'

'Uee hee hee hee, ha ha, hee! I can't, I can't stop laughing!'

'Do you want to?'

'No!'


	4. Hell's Frozen Over, and it's Come to Freeze You Too

They eventually calmed down and settled into the crisp snow, leaning into each other comfortably as they sat side by side.

'I'm afraid, afraid, my present is a bit lacklustre in contrast to yours.'

'Oh?' Seam watched intently as something glinted in the darkness of Jevil's hand. Jevil, looking back with a similar glint in his eyes, flicked the round object his thumb before it spun in the air and disappeared...into nothing?

'Aha! What's this, this?' He said coyly, slipping the object from behind Seam's ear and placing it into his paw.

Seam rolled his eye, completely unfazed. He opened his paw.

'That's the oldest trick in the-'

It was an amber button.

'What the...?' He held and compared it to his remaining eye, squinting.

It was exactly the right size.  
It was identical. It was...

'Impossible.'

The colour drained from Seam's face. He felt much colder, despite the warmth his unkempt, wooly fur gave him. He shuddered.

How...how did he get this?

He misplaced his only spare button so many years ago. And as for his first eye...

Well...

Seam's face hardened at the old, unpleasant memories.

Let's just say it was lost to time.

'Jevil.' He pressed a protective paw onto his shoulder. His raspy voice cracked with urgency.

'How did you-?’ He choked on his words. His mouth was too dry, too empty. He tried again.

‘How did you get this?'

Jevil stared back at him uneasily. He was being unusually quiet. He closed his eyes, and shrugged.

'Ah, think nothing of it Seam. Let's just say I had some helping hands!'

'Helping...hands?'  
  
S̟̤̞̖̩e͈̯͙̪͉̞̣a̭̬̙̜̗̝͇m̪̳̜̮̠̯ ̱͡s̪̜̗͉̟w̶̼̼̮̰a̘̼̞l̵͓͓̱͎͈̳l͖͇̘͢o̠ẉ̖̦͖̖e̮d͍̹͓̼ͅ ̢͎th͕̩͇̱͉̬i͖̼̯̩c̢k̫͕̼l̯y͏̫̪̜̬̻͈ͅ,̪̫̼ He ran an anxious paw through his already unruly fur, as the ominous, sickly feeling continued to grow, cloying to his thoughts l̯̩̙̭i͔̞̝̫̙̠̕ͅk̫̞͎̺̙̯e̸ ͎̪̙͖͈a̸͉̗ ͎͍t̮u͞m̼o͔u̲̫̞r̞̳̼̤͍͉͈̕.̸̠̱̯̣͖.͓ ͈D̮i̞͚d̟͓̮n̻̥̦̩̮̠̖'t̙͈̟̜̱ ̪͙̱̫̩̥h̜̝e ̟m̯̠̣e̩a͎͇̜̣͇̩̙n̞̺̺̺̥͙͓ ̝̞̩ͅa ̠h̳̩͈͓̮͓̦e͖̠̹̲͚̙͔l̗p̪̯̫̹̩̲̠i̲̪n͎̻̺̲͔g̙͖ h͚͈̦̰͕̤̞̭͈̬̞͠͝͠a̢̦̩̩̮̲͜͞n̵̸̴̰̣̺͈̥̖͢͞d͍̗͔͓̖͘͘͠͡͞?̷̢͔̯̝͖̗̜̼̱̯̬̺̠͖̜̼͟͠ ̴̶̴͖͙̬̮̫͈̹͘ͅ  
̢͝͏̼̗͔̪͉̻̩̞̠͎̬̰̦̳̮ ̤͎͖̺͇̠̳͙̺͔̣̭̯̖͕ͅ  
̸͚̫͚̬̹͓̪̩̪̮͚̩̜̥̪̜̬ͅC̵͕͙̰͓̗̲͙̲̞̹͍̜͉̠̜̱a̛̮̞̭c̮͍̥̦̼͙̝̖̞͎̟͓̙͎̹̘͚̰̲͟͜h̝̝̜̞̲̗͖̙̲͖̼̱̪̕͞ͅę̶̝̤͔͉̟̲͇͈͓̜ͅͅ ̷̛̛̳͉̯͉͕̹͈̬̠̣̺̞͈̻̖͓͚͡͡m̡̮͚̻̱̜̬͟i͠҉̢̤͉̘͇͚̜ͅş̧̼̼̘̜̜̖͖̯̬̠̥̻̘̕͠͝s̵̛̳͍̲͔̩͈̬̤̜͉̺̲͈̲̘̞̦̬i̡̨͖̪̮͓͚̩͇̘͔̮͜͜͡ͅn҉͕̼̼̝͇̗̝̩̣̩̹̫̮̝̟͕̯g̴̩̝͇̻̼͢.̶͢҉͈̹͖̜.̶҉̠̙̳̙̻̘̟̕͝.̸̩̩̤͍̙͕c̷͏̵̥̥͉͍̪̮̻̦̺̟̤̳̳̼̼̳͜ͅḁ̭̺̹͙͞ç̖͇͍̼͚̭͙̪̮̩͔̩͟͠ͅḩ͈̲̟̭̙̪͈͉͚̱͖͈͚͎̕͘͝e͚̗̪̳̭̗͈͙̰̳̲͔͍̙̰̕͢͞ ̢̨͏̡͎̹̱̭̙̣̭̳͔͓n̶̵̜̖̜͚̱̦̣̼̰͚͕͇̼̤̳͓͇̹͕͘̕͠o̶͍͕̪̲̼̤̜̳̳͙̮͘͜͟t̛͇̥̭̲̬͔̱̹̖̗̪̝̟̬̰̞̳̟̕͟ ̶͚͔͈̙̮͘̕͟f̧̹̩̥̱̙͉͍̖͟͡o̡̙͚̗̩̤̻̪̻͕̼̮͇͈̜͓͇u̵̴̸̡̗͕̲͖̯̠͚̭̠̫̩̱̼͉̠̣̻͇̙n҉̴̨̧̘͈̤̩̩͚̜͕̮͚̘d̨̛͈̭̰̜̠̫͕̠̮͠͡.̨͏͚͚̲̺̹͕̤̰̺͜͢ͅ  
҉̸̭̹̺̹͕  
̵̶͝҉̼̰͇̤͇R̶̩͖̗̳̺͟͢͟e̵̡̙̼̰̙͙͈̖̣̪̖͉̳̤͎͙̰l̵͢͏̸̺̤̦̙̳̞̱̲̼͇̞̘̞̮̝͜o̵̤̮͇͙̥̮̣̼͚̤͡ạ̴̸͚͉͙͘d̴͍̲̻͖͔͇̹͢i̡̧̻͉͔̰̬̠͙͚͜ͅn̷̖͖̟̤̳͝g̶̵͚̼̥̯̩ ̨̫͕̺͙͇͎͔͕̗͙̲ͅs̨̛̹͖͓̟͉͎͕̪̣̟̫̻̣̱̻ͅą̷̭͓̝̞̜͙͈̜̤̟̳ͅv̸̛̺̘̫̦̱̦̥̜̺̹͍͢͠ę̵̙̖͈͉.͏̵͏̡̜̹̯̰ͅ.͏̶̢̯̤̳͉̟.̴̧̝̬̝  
̴͟҉͎̲͎̪͟  
̘̗̥̖̲̗̩̰̙̙̗̖͎  
̛̳̗̮͉R̸̜̤̰e̮͡l̖̮͇͎̮̻̮o̦̣̹̮̠̦ad̴̼̭̜i͍͖͇̰̞n҉͇̩̩̤̰̼̰g̟̟.̦̙̫̲.̻̥͔͟.̡̞̙̫̤̩  
͔̠̞̜̭  
̪͍̲̘R̭̰̪̳͎͈̣͚̙̹̼̼̙̟͍ͅe͕̱̗̺̳̦͖̹͈̟̬̼̦̻̩ͅͅl͎̜̝̮̦̫̩̟̝̩̪o̰͔͙̦̭͉͕̱̜͉̻a͓̭̲̖͈̜̱̲̫̗̹̲͙̫͚̦͓̭d̘̲͉̮͉̙̯i̩͇͚͚̝̖̹̳̯̘̦͍̦͍̣ṉ̰̪̙̯̯͚̙̤̳̪̰͈g̗̬̝͔̦͙̬̠̺͖͔̠͎̙̳̯̙.̤̙͔̭.̘̭̪̜̙̙̲͓͎͉̥͔̳͓̻̺.̞̫͓͕  
͇̙̠̹ͅ  
He opened his paw.

It was an emerald button.

'I know it doesn't match like your old eye did, but I thought it would suit you all the same, same.' Jevil fiddled with his hands, unable to quite look Seam in the eye.

'Do you, do you like it?'

Did he like it? He held it up to his remaining eye; it was just the right size. An odd eye for an odd fellow.

'It's perfect, Jevil. Thank you.'  
  
His fangs peeked out as a cheerful, contented smile brightened his face. It was like magic.


	5. The Art of Escapism

  
King Spade glowered at the pandemonium that lay before him. All the furniture had been toppled over because all the Darkners had rushed to the window in a disorganised commotion. Hearts, diamonds, clubs, spades, and the rest; everyone abandoned their part in the dance to look outside, only to find that their familiar world that had never ever changed...suddenly had. Just like that. Everything, from Card Castle to the Fields of Hopes and Dreams, was covered in an unknown, colourless shroud. The sight was as strange and out of place as an angel in the sky.  
The other three kings followed suit, along with the Lightners, looking just as confused as they were.

'What's going on?' said a quizzical voice, sounding more bemused than annoyed.

'How did this happen?' asked three identically regal voices in unison.

'My gems!' cried another.  
  
He growled, barely keeping his fists to himself. Spade's disposition was very similar to that of a bear's in that respect; if you left the bear alone, it would begrudgingly ignore you in search for something better. If you disturbed the bear, however…  
  
'Oh, that little fool is going to pay.' He said, savouring the words on his tongue with a sly, vindictive smile.  
  
There was only one person twisted enough to consider such chaos 'fun', and he knew exactly who that person was.

Meanwhile...

'Uee hee hee!'

'I cast snowball of chaos!' Jevil declared, heaving a massive snowball five times his side.

Seam ducked the whole affair easily, grinning like a Cheshire cat.

'Ha ha ha! That was your biggest mistake! Now you've activated my trap card!'

'And what would that be?' Jevil wondered out loud, feigning ignorance.

'Have at you!' Seam bellowed, but failed to tackle him, as Jevil leaped over the mage like a ballerina.

'Ha! You call that, that a tra-'  
  
Big mistake. He slipped, skidding on a million marbles that Seam had scattered while he was distracted.

A diamond flashed past Seam, barely missing his face. He gasped.

'Hey, that's cheating!'

'Wasn't me, me!' Jevil righted himself, hovering next to his shoulder. The ground started to rumble, as a mist of clouds surged forwards in an avalanche of tiny crystals. He glanced dubiously, eyes like narrow constellations. Seam studied the not-so-distant disturbance with growing concern.

'It appears we have some visitors. Perhaps they want to join our mischief-mischief too?'

'Perhaps so,' observed Seam, with slight hesitation. 

Then, without missing a beat, he broke into a sprint.

A necklace of Rudinns emerged from the trees, hailing the pair with a flurry of diamond attacks. They slipped through every crack, fracturing the pure, snowy-white landscape with their incessant marching, crunching the snow beneath their feet as quickly as knives through paper.  

'Jevil! Use a smoke bomb and get us out of here!'

Jevil gasped in mock astonishment.

'Why, Seam! I thought you said earlier-'

'Now's not the time for games, Jevil! We can do that later! Now, hurry!'

'I'm afraid I can't, can't Seam!' His voice rang out in apology. 'I used up my last one!'

'Then-!' He whipped around, as a spade whistled through the air at breakneck speed-

CLANG!

In one split second, Jevil pirouetted into JEVILSCYTHE, and,  
with the help of his weaponised friend,  
  
Seam swiftly  
  
deflected  
  
the bullet.

The spade ricocheted and startled the wide-eyed guards, a few shrinking back in fear.

The blade snickered.

'Then I say, say, let's give them what they came for!'

Seam vaulted over the debris and streaked through the forest like wildfire, using Jevilscythe to clear the way. The trees blurred past while they muttered to each other, deliberating a plan.

'No!' hissed Seam with explosive indignation. 'I am NOT jumping into the river!'  
  
‘Oh, please!' The blade winked, giving the definite impression he was smirking despite lacking a face. 'I'm just kidding!'

That is, until they dropped into a shallow clearing. Seam skidded to a halt. Suddenly, they were surrounded.

Seam grasped Jevilscythe a little closer to his heart.

'I suppose you are all expecting a demonstration.'

He announced coolly, eyeing the vicious circle of spears.

The blades, glistening like ice, eagerly started to devour the gap, like a greedy, ravenous set of jaws.

Seam smiled. His eyes, both functioning and blind, burned with a rare intensity.

'Very well.'

The spears twisted in confusion as Jevilscythe, whizzing up, up through the air, spun in a haze of orange and blue. Its shape imploded, and then...

  
'Metamorphosis!' The jester crowed, hands and feet flung outwards in a triumphant gesture.

  
There was a flash, and, without warning, fireworks filled the inky sky and erupted in a spectacular display. The guards ooohed and aaahed, lowering their spears, enraptured as the sky was painted in a myriad of multi-coloured, fiery droplets.

 

When they finally tore their eyes to the ground, the two jokers were nowhere to be seen.

**Author's Note:**

> I've never really written much before, so I tricked myself into practising with fan-fiction. Anyway, I hope you enjoy it. And please, criticise me as much as you want. I really appreciate feedback. Also, 'gibbling' isn't a real word, sorry. It just made a funny kind of sense to me.


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